Celebrity wedding

[Drozz119]

We just negotiated shooting a wedding(video) in exchange for a 'plug/commercial'. The groom is pretty famous and the couple signed our contract which gives us the ability to use the finished edits for promotion anywhere.

There will be celebrities attending the wedding. Four of five of them are major leads in movies(oscars/billions of $). Will our contract cover them? Even though we have the rights to promote the video...is there a separate waiver/release I would need from the attendees?

[PeaceFire]

Most likely, no. Paparazzi do not need waivers to publish their photos. I've shot a few premiere and wrap parties since I used to work in Hollywood back in the day and never got waivers from anyone to share the pictures from those. However, I would avoid taking a picture of anyone you would not normally take a picture of. For instance, I always take a wide shot of the seats after the guests have been seated just before the ceremony starts, and will take a closer shot of the family, but I won't take pictures of the guy sitting in row 7 or the girl sitting in row 12. The day is about the bride and groom, not anyone else there.

And I will say I'm very surprised the couple signed your contract. I know a fair amount of celebrity photographers and they are always the contractee, not the contractor.

[bnlearle]

I believe paparazzi is different as it's a) usually in a public place and b) they have extra media rights, I believe.

It'll just depend on the celeb. Some are cool with it. Some are really annoying. And the real problem tends to be the publicists (they tend to care about something like this when the celeb doesn't).

But yeah, if a celeb cared, you didn't have permission, they were clearly identifiable, and you were using it for promo for your business? You'd be in the wrong since you don't have consent.

But if I were you, I'd probably take the "ask for forgiveness later" approach instead of the "ask permission before" approach.

[Kirill]

Originally Posted by bnlearle

But if I were you, I'd probably take the "ask for forgiveness later" approach instead of the "ask permission before" approach.

If OP will use a celebrity's photo to promote his business - he may get contacted by the person's lawyer and will billed the "standard rate" for the celebrity - which is likely 6 figures.

[bnlearle]

Originally Posted by Kirill

If OP will use a celebrity's photo to promote his business - he may get contacted by the person's lawyer and will billed the "standard rate" for the celebrity - which is likely 6 figures.

In theory, this MIGHT happen. But there are many reasons that it isn't likely enough to be worried. First off, you could get this email from ANY guest's lawyer. There's nothing about being a professional celebrity that brings you additional copyright rights. Second off, if a lawyer were to actually sue you BEFORE giving you warning, that wouldn't sit well with the legal system. Any competent lawyer will inform the photographer that they need to take the images down as they don't have permission -- and if the photographer refuses, then there would be something there for the courts. What you're describing is what would happen if you were to use a celeb in an ad campaign without permission, sell the celeb's likeness (like on a shirt) without permission, and so on. Something where you were making money off of a celeb's likeness. Being a guest at a wedding? Not so much.

If the OP were to use a celebrity's photo ALONE to promote his business, you may be right. But if the celebrity is in the background as a guest? It's highly, highly unlikely. This is what would most likely happen IF a celeb saw that they were in the background of their friends' wedding photos and IF they were upset by it and IF they wanted you to take it down...

You would get an email from their lawyer telling you that you need to take down the image, or else. The OP takes down the image. Nothing is said of it again.

Now, if Bono and Angelina Jolie are there, you take a photo of them together, and you put that photo in your portrait portfolio as if you were hired to shoot them? You might get in trouble. Use that photo in some more obvious situation (like taking an ad out in a wedding magazine without their permission), and you could upset some people (as you can't go back in time and take the add out of the mag). But if you post them as they are -- guests at a wedding that their friend hired you to shoot -- you probably won't hear a peep about it.

The key is not to make a HUGE fuss about it. Bragging all throughout your blog post about how so and so were there -- with tons of photos to prove it -- you might open yourself up to trouble and, more likely, just appear kind of annoying to future potential celeb clients. Treating them like normal guests is really the most important part. And being that the OP landed this gig in the first place, my hunch is that the OP probably knows this

[Drozz119]

Thanks everyone! Hopefully it's a non-factor and they're not in the background of any epic shots. We'll probably aim to shoot around them. Except for one that is in the wedding... And I'm more worried about getting body slammed than the attorneys!

[bnlearle]

Ha! I take it that it's a wrestler?

[scorpio_e]

Originally Posted by bnlearle

Ha! I take it that it's a wrestler?

Or a football player

[bnlearle]

Or an MMA guy?

[Drozz119]

Originally Posted by bnlearle

Ha! I take it that it's a wrestler?

Originally Posted by scorpio_e

Or a football player

Originally Posted by bnlearle

Or an MMA guy?

Hahaha.. one of the above!

[PeaceFire]

(Sarcasm ahead) Do wrestlers realy count as celebrities?

Totally related comment, my friend attended a wedding this past weekend that was attended by Aaron Rodgers. I am sooooooo pissed I wasn't hired for that one. Not because I want his picture for my portfolio, I want one for my desktop picture! Haha!

[Drozz119]

Originally Posted by PeaceFire

(Sarcasm ahead) Do wrestlers realy count as celebrities?

Totally related comment, my friend attended a wedding this past weekend that was attended by Aaron Rodgers. I am sooooooo pissed I wasn't hired for that one. Not because I want his picture for my portfolio, I want one for my desktop picture! Haha!

No.. I don't think wrestlers are celebrities. Unless they're a movie star now.

[brokensocial]

I don't know...wrestling is pretty much entertainment these days...

[PeaceFire]

Originally Posted by Drozz119

No.. I don't think wrestlers are celebrities. Unless they're a movie star now.

Ah! Well that narrows it down!

Wait... has someone besides The Rock gone famous in past years?

Oy. I need to start following entertainment again. I seriously haven't seen a movie or read an entertainment magazine in 5 years so I still think it's 2007.

[bnlearle]

So what sport?? MMA or football??